Container Shipping

Biden-backed plan to tackle container congestion could make logjam even worse, critics believe.

The Port of Long Beach is trying to innovate its way out of container gridlock. The latest move is regular shuttle trains to Utah to reduce less efficient truck moves.

The Los Angeles/Long Beach cargo community is confused about punitive fees on ocean carriers designed to expedite the clearance of containers from marine terminals.

The Jacksonville Port Authority handled more than 1.4 million TEUs in its 2021 fiscal year, an all-time annual record, and it says it’s ready to take on more for those wanting “congestion-free” service.

Media coverage increasingly links consumer price inflation to container shipping and supply chain chaos.

To make room for more containers at the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach, UP and BNSF are offering incentives to ocean carrier customers to move out the containers already there. UP is also temporarily pausing westbound marine container movement to its Long Beach facility.

Many media outlets are reporting that a Long Beach city order will allow bigger container stacks at the port. Not true. It’s for container yards outside the harbor district.

It’s no coincidence that spiking trans-Pacific trade coincides with more boxes overboard and more shipping accidents.

Ocean cargo shippers are paying more than they ever have before for the worst service they’ve ever experienced.

The Port of Los Angeles had its busiest September ever, while Long Beach had its second busiest.

California port congestion is as bad as ever. Some imports have been stranded offshore for over a month.

Port volumes across the Gulf Coast were boosted in September by exports of petroleum and steel and imports of refrigerated cargo.

Barbara Melvin will succeed Jim Newsome at the helm of South Carolina Ports next summer and will become the first woman to lead a top-10 U.S. container port.

The ocean shipping boom is spreading across vessel types. Spot LNG shipping rates just topped $150,000 per day.

The Biden administration is pushing industry to take immediate and long-term steps to get ports and intermodal transport working smoothly.

For the time being, two ocean services will not call Georgia’s busy Port of Savannah.

Liner deals in the ship-leasing market imply strong confidence in high freight rates for the foreseeable future.

Supply chain constraints are keeping a lid on freight volumes while rates continue to reach new highs, according to September data from Cass Information Systems.

“The growth we’re seeing is not artificial, and the movement of loaded and empty containers is up, for both exports and imports.”

As America struggles with a growing supply chain crisis, ocean carriers rake in even more profits.

“By investing more than $2 billion in port infrastructure in recent years, we have the capacity to handle the influx of imports we are seeing today,” says SCPA CEO Jim Newsome.

Pullback in trans-Pacific shipping rates: beginning of the end or brief reprieve with end still not in sight?

“This record result was achieved despite severe congestion around the network,” says the Hong Kong ocean carrier.

Despite Ikea’s many climate-related goals, Ship It Zero is calling out the Swedish retailer and other major players such as Amazon and Walmart via “die-ins” to highlight shipping emissions’ impacts on human and environmental health.

New forecasts from the National Retail Federation call for retail imports to stay high through at least February.

Cost of fuel consumed by container ships, bulkers and tankers is effectively at a seven-year high.

Yes, despite the headaches, the ocean carriers are making boatloads of money.

Officials say a proposed inland port near where the Mississippi and Ohio rivers meet will have ample capacity to serve Midwest customers seeking export access via barge, rail and truck.

If you thought President Joe Biden would quickly reverse Trump’s controversial trade policy toward China, guess again. U.S. importers aren’t happy.

Shipping Asia-U.S. via regular ocean service and rail? “I would bet your goods will not arrive in time for Christmas,” says Flexport’s Nerijus Poskus.

FreightWaves’ Anthony Smith talks about the ways shippers are building reliant supply chains with Nate Shutes, VP of global fulfillment and logistics at Blu Dot, during FreightWaves’ OceanWaves Summit.

Ports and inland transportation connections are choking on ocean imports. A top economist says don’t blame ocean carriers.

The NS terminal will serve “strong growth in the Louisville intermodal market.”

Los Angeles is at the front line of the port congestion crisis. Its executive director outlines his strategy to clear anchorages.

How will public view ships anchored off Los Angeles/Long Beach if one of them is tied to Huntington Beach spill?

Third-party logistics provider Unique Logistics filed for a public offering, which is expected to raise at least $35.5 million in net proceeds.

With no end in sight for global supply chain crisis, importers warned to brace for high costs throughout next year.

Containerized exports continue to struggle but overall, U.S. exports are rising. Sales are at record levels for some commodities.

With disruptions likely to linger well into 2022, intermodal equipment provider DCLI sees the labor shortfall as the biggest hurdle in the supply chain.

Freight Farms is turning shipping containers into productive farms that require only 5 gallons of water per day.

The East Coast ports of Savannah and Jacksonville are adding more container capacity amid long-term plans to serve as an alternative to West Coast ports.

As some Chinese factories go dark, more delays for container imports but bullish sign for coal, LNG and oil shipping.

Costco is going boating. Unwilling to wait for space on commercial vessels, it is now renting its own ships to haul exports from Asia.

Trans-Pacific traffic snarl is bicoastal: More container ships waiting off Shanghai and Ningbo than Southern California.

One of the largest container terminals in Southern California is testing a system for 24-hour cargo pickup.

Southern California ports would need two weeks with zero vessel arrivals to clear logjam — but the ships keep coming.

Dry bulk shares suffer double-digit declines, with tanker and container stocks also caught up in the sell-off.

Supply chains are melting down and the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach are taking steps to ease truck delays.

A National Labor Relations Board judge ruled the International Longshoremen’s Association cannot force the use of union labor at the Port of Charleston’s new Leatherman Terminal.

Liner profits still rising: second half looks stronger than first and Deutsche Bank sees even higher earnings next year.

Supply chain crisis deepens as more imports snared in historic ship queue off Los Angeles/Long Beach.

Container ships named The Brady, The Belichick and The Gronk just sold for six to eight times their purchase price, spurring a nine-figure payday.

August was a record month for the Port of Virginia in Norfolk, and the trend of higher year-over-year volumes could persist through the rest of 2021 as peak season approaches.

Dry bulk and LNG shipping stocks now at 52-week peaks with container stocks not far from the top.

Demand for container ships is so extreme that some operators are paying unprecedented sums to rent them.

Two of China’s main ports are preparing for the arrival of Typhoon Chanthu, which could slam Taiwan first.

Container volumes were “strong” in August amid continued retail import volume growth at the Port of Charleston, the South Carolina Ports Authority said.

In unprecedented move, CMA CGM unilaterally halts rate increases until February amid rising global supply chain chaos.

The Port of Long Beach has broken monthly cargo records 13 of the past 14 months.

Recent earnings reports from retailers exhibited improved inventory positions compared to a year ago. However, the comps show merchandise levels are still lagging sales by a wide margin.

The Vancouver transload facility will primarily handle fast-moving consumer goods and auto parts.

New details on record 2019 cocaine haul aboard MSC Gayane — which may not have been the first run — as U.S. wraps up convictions.

Virginia’s competitive advantages: a naturally deep harbor, semi-automated terminals and its own, newer chassis pool.

Cosco and MSC fight back against accusations that they inflated rates, violated contracts and broke U.S. law.

More container ships are stuck at anchor off California than ever before. The gridlock is about to get even worse.

C.H. Robinson announces a drayage surcharge at most of the nation’s biggest container ports as international drayage carriers have implemented congestion fees.

Discount chain Dollar Tree expects the positive impact from heightened consumer demand to be totally offset by elevated transportation expenses this year.

As stimulus-fueled demand overwhelms trans-Pacific capacity, a widening freight spread leaves small shippers behind.

The White House is trying to unleash the domestic economy by removing supply chain shackles.

U.S. rail terminals that handle imports are still grappling with chassis shortages, although efforts are being made to address overflow at the terminals.

Container mega-spike recalls epic dry bulk run over a decade ago. Here’s a look back at the last time shipping had it this good.

As this year’s peak season gets underway, dislocations in the supply chain are increasing. However, this is really nothing new as the industry has been in peak mode for a year.

Demand for new containers has been historically high. Even so, the Chinese factories that build the world’s boxes are churning them out efficiently.

Extreme measures to contain delta variant create unprecedented backlog of dry bulk ships off China.

It costs $1.2 million to charter a cargo jet from Vietnam as air exports slow because of the government’s response to a wave of COVID infections.

News about BNSF, Kansas City Southern, Trinity Industries and TTCI.

You can’t blame carriers for refusing to stick by a handshake agreement to sell service at pre-negotiated rates or at a discount.

Ocean carrier ZIM now expects to earn $4.8 billion-$5.2 billion this year — five times what it earned in 2020.

Port of Los Angeles boss warns: ‘Anchorage and dwell times are trending in the wrong direction.’

Ocean carriers adjust to the partial port closing in Ningbo, China, with minimal disruption so far. Operations could soon return to full speed if COVID remains at bay.

July’s volumes are a monthly record and the second highest for 2021.

Container volumes rose 25% at the Port of Savannah, while auto and machinery units grew 39% at Brunswick.

Queue of container ships off U.S. ports keeps building, with months’ worth of peak-season cargo still to unload.

Although Canadian grain shippers anticipate lower grain harvest volumes for the 2021-2022 crop year, adequate rail service remains a chief concern.

The Port of Ningbo is in a partial lockdown, putting immense pressure on an ocean transportation system squeezed to the maximum. It’s a replay of the Yantian port slowdown earlier this summer.

Canadian Tire is acquiring a 25% stake in Ashcroft Terminal in a deal that will allow the retailer to move containers from the Port of Vancouver more efficiently, while securing rail capacity.

South Carolina ports started the fiscal year off with a bang, moving a record volume of containers in July.

Yantian redux. Shipping activity slowed to a crawl at the Port of Yantian in China earlier this summer after an outbreak of COVID infections, and the same could happen in Ningbo if more cases are discovered.

Plaquemines Port announced it has found the site for its state-of-the-art container terminal that will be able to handle vessels carrying up to 22,000 TEUs.

The CEOs of five Class I railroads tell the Surface Transportation Board that the root causes of the congestion facing rail intermodal terminals are beyond the railroads’ control.

August is likely to see a new monthly record for retail container imports, with 2021 doing the same. However, ongoing supply chain dislocation clouds how quickly consumers will be able to get their hands on the goods.

Maersk results offer more evidence that capacity constraints and U.S. — not worldwide — demand drive rates.

“Be careful what you wish for,” warns industry expert Lars Jensen of proposals to rein in container shipping’s boom.

Los Angeles’ port boss speaks to American Shipper about congestion challenges — and potential release valves.

Container giant earned $5.1 billion in the second quarter and expects earnings of $18 billion-$19.5 billion for the year.

U.S. inventory-to-sales ratio still historically low as key import source — China — faces growing delta variant risk.

Almost no container ships were stuck at anchor when 2020 peak season began. This peak season, terminals are pre-clogged.

Ocean Network Express says the “economic environment is now changing” and it cannot forecast what the rest of 2021 holds, but Hapag-Lloyd can. It expects to triple 2020’s EBITDA.

We have a new winner in the ocean shipping game of “How High Can Rates Go?” — about 15 times higher than before the COVID crisis.

Disparities between container index prices wider than ever after big course correction by Freightos.